I haven't followed MLS for much over a year, so I'm a bit puzzled by all the animosity and hate directed towards a possible Chivas team in MLS. I haven't seen anyone say "Cleveland sucks!", "Piss on Cleveland!", or "Cleveland will destroy MLS!" when a possible Cleveland team was announced. Is all this animosity because: a. US/Mexico soccer rivalry on a national level b. Chivas came and beat or hurt some MLS team (they did come play against our "allstar" team, which hardly seemed fair for them) c. Chivas management is somehow evil or unfriendly. d. Racist paranoia about Mexicans or immigration (I hope not) e. or some other reason. This possible Chivas team does not have players or even a city to play in yet, so I'm curious as to why some people have decided to uncategorically hate them already. Thanks for clearing this up. Quango
I think it's pretty complicated, and actually part of the reason that there has been animosity is b/c statements made in Spanish have been taken out of context by US press and BS posters. Those misinterpretations have been cemented in the minds of BS posters when minions in the Chivas organization or minions in OTHER affiliated companies (Omnilife) have made statements. From there, ppl f-REAKED out and recurred to tired cliches and stereotypes (Mexicans aren't trustworthy) that have been diseminated vs. Mexicans, Latinos and even Spaniards. (The whole notion of yellow journalism was born of the Spanish-US war b/c the Spaniards were barbarians b/c a US ship blew up on its own, a fact only recently acknowledged by the US government.) Even now that Vergara has spoken very clearly about his intentions, ppl still haven't backed down, despite claiming for months that their ONLY problem was blah, blah, blah... and that some of their BEST friends are Mexicans.
There's enough threads on here about Chivas USA to determine for youself. But I think the biggest gripe would be a) Changing some sort of league rules so that they'd feild more internationals than other MLS teams. This has largely already been cleared up and seems pretty sure not to happen. b) Wanting to have a team made up solely or primarily of people of one nation or ethnicity. Beyond being probably illegal, this offends most people's sense of fairness and what constitues discrimination. c) Worrying that Chivas just wants to extend it's brand name and does not have as much or any real interest in helping to grow the league. d) That Chivas USA would be used as some sort of international farm team for Chivas. People see that as a sign of disrespect for the league.
This is the big one. At one time, the idea was being entertained to extend Chivas USA priviledges not open to other clubs. This is why so many people were angered. Believe me, it has nothing to do with racism, it has everything to do with fairness and equality in the league. Because the idea was even entertained, a lot of people won't be able to let that go. The same thing would've happened if the idea was to let a team exist of almost all Romanian nationals or Japanese nationals or whatever...it has nothing to do with it being Latinos. People just didn't like the idea of a non-American having special priviledges that would ultimately serve non-Americans in the American league.
maxim-1 I think it's safe to say that NONE of the above will transpire. The only issue that ppl might have would be that the LANGUAGE of the team would be Spanish, but that's not illegal. My Chinese-Mexican hairstylist's son (who's better at footie than my nephews, who can muster a few phrases in Spanish) would be eligible. Heck, a gringo or an Arab would be as well. And Vergara said that they will NOT go for an all Latino team the first few years. They're going to try to develop a STYLE, which is precisely what is needed in this country to incorporate the largest soccer-consuming group in the nation: Latinos.
since day 1 we've been saying that it's not an official DEMAND, but rather a request. It's like when as a kid you ask your mom if you can have ice cream, she says no, and you move on. Now if you throw a temper tantrum and piss and pout and say you're never gonna be a fan of MLS again b/c they've sold out and it's OUR league and Vergara's tortilla vender said that IT'S NOT FAIR... Then there's a problem. The thing is, the pouters and whiners were NEVER Vergara and his minions. They asked (politely) for an extra serving of ice-cream. MLS said no. Case closed. They moved on.
Did you hear me complain? Did you hear me say anything bad about Chivas? No & No are the answers to those two questions. The guy asked why people were mad, I answered his question. A lot of people were offended that he'd even ask. I'm not saying that they're right or wrong for being offended, I'm just stating a fact. Sure, as a businessman, it's his job to push the envelope and see what he can get away with, I certainly don't fault him for that. But to a lot of people, it was a request that was more than a request, they took it as a slight. I'm not saying people shouldn't move on, I'm merely trying to answer this guy's question.
maxim pretty well covered the bases for me. I would just add that I have a feeling that Chivas USA will only be a temporary member. I can't imagine Chivas being in it for American soccer, and definitely not for the long haul. In a nutshell, this isn't NFL Europe. Go spread your brand name in some other league. Beyond that, the name sucks. Until they played the All Star Game, I didn't know what a Chiva was. And I took Spanish for five years. When I found out, I didn't want such a team for our league. The Goats? Someone forgot to tell them that that animal doesn't have a positive connotation in American sports. This is as bad an idea as "Team Canada," to borrow from the history of the NASL.
i see the reason behind the high level anomosity level towards chivas usa is because of the rivalry between US and Mexican soccer. MLS has been the flagship of amerian soccer to show that we can compete with the worlds best. MLS has helped take US soccer the new hieghts of achievements. Chivas doesnt look like it wants to be part of this, statements made by vergara's minnions have basically made statements to this effect. Chivas just as mexican team, its the mexican team, in that they dont allow any non-mexicans on the team in guadalajara. This is a huge source of pride there, but for thm to have a team in US, and be exclusionary to the great majority of americans, rubs most people the wrong way. Not that a large percentage of fans having a strong dislike of them would be bad for the league, it would bring a new level of passion to MLS.
It is one thing to ask, it is another when you have MLS saying one thing, and Vergara's press corp saying another.. I think it was all hype just to get the hornets nest buzzing. It worked. Now that it looks like Chivas will follow the rest of the leagues rules, the animosity is dying a quick death, sans a few loudmouths who just want omething to hate.. I was pissed when I heard it, but now things seem fair, and I am rather excited about Chivas and and anxious to see how they will be recieved. Hopefully well, the pockets of MLS could afford to fattened..
yeah i agree with you both. as long as they're playing the same rules then i'm pretty much cool. the idea of blatently having a spanish speaking oriented team, or one of all latino or mexican descent does give me pause. but handled in the right way should be just fine. i just hope that MLS and Chivas aren't underestimating any potentially damaging publicity because of these ideas.
Whoops! That was meant to be a hypothetical "you" and absolutely not directed at you personally. My apologies for the confusion.
chivas is a team id love to hate. i hope they put the team in san diego so I can make some more away games.
Are $12-20 million dollars plus covering their share of annual losses in the millions (some say $50 million/yr) NOT in it for the long haul? Is building an SSS not the "long haul"? Are US Latinos NOT Americans? Are they only temporary Americans that serve you your latte and burrito and clean your office and homes and schools, but once they're done then they are not Americans? What's so unamerican about carving out a space for them in the US sports landscape so that they can consume and participate in society? Just wondering...
A point of view.... Even though it seems to be unfair and racist, a Mexican Chivas will be a magnet for many chivas fan in USA and will catter more needed income to keep MLS on black ink, a really important issue if we want to keep our MLS for the long run also we will witness a increase on quality on the league and the chance to have at least 3 under 17 on the Chivas team and adding a Mexican coach will be the spark that MLS badly need to get rid of so many mediocre coaches.....
Re: A point of view.... I don't doubt that in the slightest and there are mediocre coaches in MLS...I was merely pointing out people's objections.
Totally agree Carlos! I can't figure out why anyone would bite the hand that feeds...they'll all play by the league rules. mass hysteria by BS posters! I am hoping to see some more flair on the pitch and atmosphere in the stands!